Report:
The Forrester Wave™: B2B Intent Data Providers, Q2 2023
How does Forrester define the B2B Intent Data Providers market in 2023?
The B2B intent data market has evolved to include four distinct business models: traditional data providers (third-party signals as standalone product), ABM platforms (third-party signals as platform differentiator), campaign execution firms (mix of third- and second-party signals supporting marketing services), and walled gardens (second-party signals from owned properties for specific industries). Nearly 75% of intent buyers purchase from multiple providers to meet distinct marketing and sales use cases. Buyers should seek providers offering incremental insights through unique collection methodologies, complementary data sources, and alignment with geographic coverage requirements including non-English language support for global operations.
Key Facts for The Forrester Wave™: B2B Intent Data Providers, Q2 2023 in 2023
- Publication Date: 23-May-2023
- Document ID: RES178498
- Summary: In our 26-criterion evaluation of B2B intent data providers, we identified the most significant ones and researched, analyzed, and scored them. This report shows how each provider measures up in the depth, breadth, and quality of the intent data they provide and helps B2B sales, marketing, and operations professionals select the right one(s) for their needs.
- Authors: Brett Kahnke, Cristina De Martini, Caroline Provost, Kara Hartig
How did the B2B Intent Data Providers market evolve in 2023?
- The intent data market has evolved to include providers representing four distinct business models: traditional data providers, account-based marketing (ABM) platforms, campaign execution firms, and walled gardens
- Nearly 75% of intent buyers are purchasing from multiple providers according to Forrester's Q1 2023 Global B2B Intent Data Survey
- Traditional data providers focus on capturing third-party signals as a standalone product
- ABM platforms produce third-party signals as a differentiator for their built-in analytics and activation capabilities
- Campaign execution firms generate a mix of third- and second-party signals in support of marketing services
- Walled gardens collect second-party signals for specific industries directly from user activity on their owned properties
- Intent data outside traditionally English-speaking countries is a differentiating factor for large organizations looking to support global sales and marketing efforts
- Most large intent providers are capturing an increasing proportion of their signals from English-language research taking place in EMEA, APAC, and LATAM
- Only a handful of providers are capturing a significant volume of signals in local languages from those locations
- 14 providers were evaluated in this Forrester Wave assessment
What product features are required to be included in this year's evaluation?
- Second- or third-party proprietary intent data. Providers must demonstrate their proprietary means of collecting either second- or third-party intent signals. Forrester did not include pure data aggregators or resellers that don't offer proprietary data.
- At least $10 million in annual intent data revenue. Providers must have annual revenue from customers leveraging their proprietary intent data offerings of at least $10 million, as demonstrated by Forrester's B2B Intent Data Providers Landscape, Q1 2023, report.
- Significant mindshare with Forrester clients. Each provider gets regular mentions by Forrester clients and/or competing providers in the context of inquiry, guidance sessions, briefings, and/or consulting engagements related to B2B data providers.
What are the common features of top products in the B2B Intent Data Providers space?
No common features specified.
Scope Exclusions
- Activation capabilities that would favor certain business models (subject of other Forrester Wave reports)
- Pure data aggregators or resellers that don't offer proprietary intent data
- Providers with less than $10 million in annual intent data revenue
- First-party intent data collection (report focuses on second- and third-party signals)
- Campaign execution effectiveness and pipeline generation metrics
- Broader B2B marketing and sales data capabilities beyond intent signals
- ABM platform features unrelated to core intent data production
Inclusion Criteria
Vendors must, among other requirements:
- Second- or third-party proprietary intent data - providers must demonstrate proprietary means of collecting either second- or third-party intent signals
- At least $10 million in annual intent data revenue from customers leveraging proprietary intent data offerings
- Significant mindshare with Forrester clients through regular mentions in inquiry, guidance sessions, briefings, and/or consulting engagements
Offering Strengths — Relative Weighting
- Data coverage — 20%
- Data granularity — 10%
- Intent data types — 5%
- Data acquisition and processing — 10%
- Accuracy and noise filtering — 20%
- Customer marketing, retention, cross-sell, and upsell — 5%
- Data security and compliance — 10%
- Analytics capabilities — 10%
- Reporting and insights — 5%
- Data delivery — 5%
Strategy Strength — Relative Weighting
- Vision — 25%
- Innovation — 20%
- Roadmap — 20%
- Partner ecosystem — 5%
- Pricing flexibility and transparency — 10%
- Global delivery strategy — 20%
FAQs
Q: What does this research cover?
A: This research covers a 26-criterion evaluation of B2B intent data providers, focusing exclusively on the intent data each produces. The evaluation excludes factors such as activation capabilities and examines how each provider measures up in the depth, breadth, and quality of the intent data they provide across current offering, strategy, and market presence dimensions.
Q: Who should use this research?
A: B2B sales, marketing, and operations professionals should use this research to select the right intent data provider(s) for their needs. The report helps organizations understand which providers meet the distinct needs of their marketing and sales use cases, offer incremental insights with unique collection methodologies, and align with their geographic coverage requirements.
Q: What are the mandatory features of vendors included in this market?
A: To be included in this evaluation, vendors must offer proprietary second- or third-party intent data collection capabilities (not pure aggregation or resale), demonstrate at least $10 million in annual revenue specifically from intent data offerings, and maintain significant mindshare with Forrester clients through regular mentions in research inquiries, guidance sessions, briefings, and consulting engagements related to B2B data providers.
Q: What are some reasons for not being included in this report?
A:
- Pure data aggregators or resellers without proprietary intent data collection methods
- Providers with less than $10 million in annual intent data revenue
- Vendors lacking significant mindshare or client mentions in Forrester research contexts
- Providers offering only first-party intent data without second- or third-party signals
- New market entrants without established customer bases or proven revenue
- Vendors who declined to participate or contributed only partially to the evaluation process
Q: What should buyers consider when evaluating products in this market?
A:
- Evaluate providers that meet distinct needs of both marketing and sales use cases across the full buyer's journey
- Seek providers offering incremental insights with unique collection methodologies that complement existing data sources
- Pair vendors focused on broad bidstream data collection with providers offering exclusive publisher co-ops or walled-garden communities
- Combine providers strong in early-stage to mid-stage signals with those offering clear late-stage signals like competitor and pricing comparisons
- Ensure alignment with geographic coverage requirements, especially for non-English language support in EMEA, APAC, and LATAM
- Consider mixing and matching providers (one from column A, one from column B) rather than seeking a single best choice
- Assess whether proprietary signals from walled gardens are available for your specific target industries
- Evaluate data delivery options and integration capabilities with existing marketing and sales technology stacks
Q: How has the B2B Intent Data Providers market evolved in 2023?
A:
- Multi-vendor purchasing strategy with nearly 75% of intent buyers purchasing from multiple providers
- Evolution of four distinct business models: traditional data providers, ABM platforms, campaign execution firms, and walled gardens
- Increasing importance of unique collection methodologies to provide incremental, non-duplicative insights
- Growing demand for geographic coverage beyond English-speaking countries, including local language support in EMEA, APAC, and LATAM
- Integration of intent data into broader ABM platforms and marketing automation systems
- Pairing of early-stage/mid-stage intent providers with late-stage signal providers for complete buyer journey coverage
- Shift toward combining bidstream data with exclusive publisher co-ops and walled-garden communities
- Advanced AI and machine learning applications for predictive intent and custom scoring models
Q: What differentiates Strength of Offering vs. Strength of Strategy?
A: Current Offering (vertical axis) evaluates the strength of each vendor's existing product capabilities including data coverage, granularity, accuracy, analytics, and delivery options. Strategy (horizontal axis) assesses the vendor's future direction and market approach including vision, innovation, roadmap, partnerships, pricing models, and global expansion plans. Current Offering focuses on what vendors deliver today, while Strategy evaluates their positioned trajectory for future market success.
Reference
- Forrester, The Forrester Wave™: B2B Intent Data Providers, Q2 2023, 23-May-2023, ID RES178498
View Leaders
View Vendor Movements
